Warriors complete perfect night as former top 10 picks leads Santa Cruz to victory

It was a perfect night for the Golden State Warriors from a results standpoint, with the main squad securing an NBA Cup victory over the Memphis Grizzlies and Santa Cruz delivering a win of their own against the South Bay Lakers.

After a disappointing 133-104 loss last Saturday to the Valley Suns, the Warriors came out with a vengeance before eventually securing a 128-118 victory over the visiting Lakers at Kaiser Permanente Arena.

Kevin Knox II led the Santa Cruz Warriors to victory on Friday night

The Warriors burst out of the blocks with a 36-16 opening period, and while the Lakers mounted a comeback with a 38-25 second-quarter, the hosts did enough to maintain their advantage in a competitive second-half.

After failing to win a main roster spot with Golden State following the completion of training camp and preseason, Kevin Knox II put his best foot forward with a strong performance on Friday. The former ninth overall pick had a team-high 24 points in 31 minutes, shooting 7-of-12 from the floor and 4-of-7 from three-point range.

Knox had a major highlight in the third-quarter with a nasty in-out dribble that led to a two-hand jam (see below), while the 25-year-old forward also added seven rebounds, three assists and a steal in the 10-point victory.

Knox was far from a lone hand though -- just as they had done in the season opening win against the Suns last Friday, all five starters for the Warriors scored at least 15 points including rookie center Quinten Post.

After a 25-point, 15-rebound performance in the first meeting with the Suns, the 52nd overall pick recorded his second double-double in three games with 16 points, 11 rebounds and two assists in 27 minutes. Post shot 5-of-11 from the floor and 2-of-7 from three-point range, but fouled out of the game with just over six minutes remaining.

In his season debut on assignment from Golden State, Gui Santos was solid with 15 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals also on 5-of-11 shooting. Point guard Yuri Collins had 18 points and eight assists, forward Jackson Rowe had 16 points and four assists, and sharpshooter Blake Hinson had 18 points and six rebounds on 5-of-7 shooting off the bench.

Quincy Olivari -- who went viral after speaking about Stephen Curry following a strong performance against Golden State in the preseason -- had a game-high 33 points but shot just 7-of-21 from the floor in 37 minutes.

The Warriors shot 51.3% from the field and 38.9% from three-point range, while keeping the Lakers to 42.2% shooting and 31.3% from beyond the arc. The Warriors were fortunate not to be hurt by their 25 turnovers, with the Lakers seeing 14 more field-goal attempts as a result.

Santa Cruz were without two-way contracted pair Reece Beekman and Pat Spencer, with their next matchup coming against the Stockton Kings at Adventist Health Arena on Wednesday.